


Fake-Date Coupons

by clato27



Category: Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare, Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types, Shadowhunter Chronicles - Cassandra Clare, Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alec and Lydia are hella awkward, Alec is a good bro, Asexual!Lydia, Coming Out, F/M, Gay!Alec, Happy Ending, Lydia and Alec are best friends, Lydia falls in love with Alec's cousin, M/M, Magnus and Izzy enjoy it more then they should, Magnus is an even better bro, Maryse is a bad mom, accepting family, bc why not, but Lydia and Alec don't fall in love, but they do and it all ends up ok, fake dating au, fear about coming out, homophobic parent, like best friends forever, like twice, that is a trope on it's own man, they might kiss
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-29
Updated: 2016-09-15
Packaged: 2018-08-11 17:59:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,252
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7902319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/clato27/pseuds/clato27
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Fake-Date Coupons were made for one reason and one reason only: to keep Lydia and Alec in the closet for as long as they needed. The coupons go forgotten for close to five years before Alec decides to use his on his grandmother’s 98th birthday party. It would have been fine if Lydia didn’t start crushing on Alec’s cousin. </p>
<p>AKA the fake dating AU where the two characters who are fake dating don’t fall in love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Friday

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not usually into fake dating AUs because we all know how they end and I feel that ruins the whole purpose of the fic, so I decided to make my own. My mind went straight to Alec and Lydia being awkward best friends pretending to be straight with their families and this was born. Asexual Lydia is my own head canon (and dream) so I just had to incorporate it. Also, I'm basing Lydia's sexuality off my own. Ever person is different so I am no way speaking for all asexuals, just me and how intemperate my asexuality right now.

The idea of the Fake-Date coupons had started a long time ago, but they had gone unused for close to five years since the day they were created. 

 

Lydia and Alec had met during their first week at NYU. They were two peas, honestly, so when their outgoing and eccentric roommates dragged them to a dorm party a couple sophomores were throwing, it was no surprise that they had found each other. Neither liked to drink or had very good social skills so they had ended up spending the whole party hanging out in a random corner and talking about math, believe it or not. 

 

Thus was the beginning of the amazing Best Friendship ™ of Alec Lightwood and Lydia Branwell. 

 

The creation of the Fake-Date Coupons was right before winter break of their freshmen year. They were hanging out in Lydia’s room when she came up with the idea. It was the night before she was supposed to fly back to Chicago for Christmas break and Alec was supposed to take a cab home the day after. 

 

They were both dreading going home, understandably. They were both returning to a life of homophobic parents and the closet life after being basically out and proud for the last few months. Alec had known he was gay since he was fourteen and had been hiding it for almost as long. Lydia was the first person he had told outright, but he hadn’t been hiding it since he moved into the dorms. Lydia, on the other hand, was asexual and had no idea how she felt about relationships and affection. Half of her thought she needed someone to make out with but the other half was scared of any type of relationship stepping stone. It was a vicious, vicious cycle she was stuck in. 

 

Lydia was lying, stretched out, on her bed while Alec sat on the floor, his back against side of the bed and his legs stretched out so far they were basically against the other bed. Alec was complaining, as always, and Lydia was doing a good job not listening to him until she suddenly sprang up. 

 

“I have an idea!” Lydia exclaimed, rolling off the bed and basically into Alec’s lap. She wretched the notebook and marker out of his hand and began scribbling on the next blank page. “So, we go home, and when our parents ask about any significant others, we just hint at each other. Nothing too specific or damning like ‘oh yeah, there is this one guy who seems really nice’ or ‘there’s a really pretty girl in my building who I’m trying to get up the nerve to talk to.’ Just really innocent stuff to keep our parents off our back. But in a couple years…” she trailed off, concentrating as she ripped the paper into two coupon sized squares. 

 

“But in a couple years,” she began again, grinning at Alec like a maniac. “When we’ve been avoiding coming out for way too long, we use this coupon for a seemingly normal, heterosexual partner for one family function, the last hurrah of our pretend straightness.” 

 

Alec took the coupon from her hand and looked it over. He shook his head, but grinned at her. “This is literally the dumbest but greatest idea you have ever gotten. I am so in.” 

 

Since then, the Fake-Date Coupons had mostly been a running joke or completely forgotten about until two summers after they had graduated from NYU. 

 

They had both grown up a lot since then. Lydia’s classes at the police academy were about to start up, she was happily single, and best friends with Chairman Meow. Alec has been in a relationship with the marvelous Magnus Bane since the beginning of sophomore year. Magnus had basically lived with them since they rented the apartment right after graduation, but they had only officially put him on the lease a month before the whole fiasco. Life was all nice and simple until Alec handed her that damn Fake-Date Coupon she had forgotten about. 

 

He had handed it out to her like it was going to bite him and said, “Lydia, I’m cashing it in.”

 

“What?” Lydia had asked, taking the paper from him warily, not sure what he was handing her until she actually read it. “You still have this?” She asked him before coming back to herself. “Wait, no. Why are you cashing this in?”

 

Alec swayed from foot to foot, biting his lower lip and avoiding Lydia’s eyes. “It’s my grandmother’s birthday next weekend. Her 98th birthday. It’s like a huge thing. Most of my extended family is coming for the party and my mom and her siblings even rented a house so the immediate family can all stay together for the whole weekend. It’s a big deal, Lyd. My grandma doesn’t have much time left, this is probably the last birthday she’s going to celebrate.”

 

“I get that,” Lydia said. “But why do I need to be there?”

 

“Because I’m my grandma’s favorite and my mom thinks it will be great for her to meet and approve of my girlfriend,” Alec explained, sheepishly. 

 

“But you don’t have a girlfriend,” Lydia said matter of factly, almost offended by the statement. Her eyes narrowed and she glared at Alec. “Why do your parents think you have a girlfriend?” Lydia asked. 

 

Alec rubbed at the back of his neck, keeping intense eye contact with the floor. “Because when we moved in together, they, um, kinda assumed we were together and I didn’t correct them.” 

 

Lydia stood up from her seat on the couch to meet Alec’s eyes. That wasn’t hard, since she barely came up to his chin and he was looking down at his feet. “Alec,” Lydia started once her brown eyes met his hazel ones. “Who do your parents think Magnus is then?”

 

Alec sighed and dropped onto the couch. “My roommate slash best friend. Basically the male you. But, Lydia, he’s perfectly ok with this if you are. Seriously, we talked about this for hours. I pretend for the weekend and then I come out at Christmas. I hate this just as much as you do, but I can’t just come out, my mother would kill me and think of my grandmother. If she finds out her favorite grandson is gay she might literally die from the shock. Please, Lydia. I need you.”

 

Lydia glared at him, but it was hard to be mad at him when he felt so horrible about it. “Are you sure Magnus is completely, 100% ok with this?”

 

“He gave me blatant permission,” Alec replied quickly. “He even wants to come and watch the whole thing go down. He thinks it’s going to blow up in our faces. He’s going to enjoy it.”

 

“Ok, ok,” Lydia sighed again. “When’s the party?”

… 

 

The 98th birthday party of Sofia Margarita Trueblood was a huge event. All five of her children had pitched in to rent a huge lake house for the weekend so Sofia could spend time with her grandchildren and to double as a venue for her party. Alec reported that the house would be stuffed to the top with his family the whole weekend and overflowing with extended family and his grandmother's friends by Sunday.

 

“I have like 12 cousins,” Alec had said from his spot in the back seat on the drive up. “Plus, my eight aunts and uncles. As far as I know, they’re all coming and staying Friday and Saturday night in the house. The house is going to be big but it’s still going to be crowded. My family does go overboard sometimes with this kind of stuff, but it’s still going to be crazy.”

 

When Alec had explained the amount of people in the house and his family “spare no dollar for comfort” ideology, they still only expected a house, not a mansion. But when Magnus parked his car across the street from the lake house the Truebloods were renting, they were met with one of the biggest houses they had ever seen. 

 

“Goodness, Alexander,” Magnus said, leaning forward against the steering wheel to get a full view of the houses. “I knew your family was rich, but I had no idea how rich.” 

 

Alec only shrugged and got out of the car, going straight to the trunk to get out their bags. Lydia followed him, taking her bag from his hands when he handed it to her. “Are you sure you want to do this, Alec?” 

 

“Yes. It’s not even three days and then I’m back to being my regular gay self. It’s going to be fine,” Alec said, but it sounded as if he was convincing himself as much as her. “I’m going to be fine.” 

 

“Sure you will, babe,” Magnus reassured saractically. He came up behind Alec and raising on his toes to plans a kiss on Alec’s cheek. “But don’t fret, I’ll be there to comfort you when your whole plan blows up in your face.” 

 

“The only reason it’ll blow up is if you don’t quit it with the ‘babes,’” Alec said, pushing Magnus’s face away with his hand. 

 

Magnus pouted. “Well, if I don’t get to call you any of my adorable nicknames, do I at least get one last kiss to get me through this smoochless weekend?”

 

“I said smooch one time,” Alec grumbled, but still did a customary look around for any wandering family before bending down and giving Magnus a chaste kiss. “And hopefully this won’t be a smoochless weekend.”

 

“Not for you and Miss Branwell, I’m sure,” Magnus replied somewhat bitterly, eyes rolling. Lydia’s stomach churned at the statement and Alec’s ears turned a crimson red. “Oh no, don't tell me you hadn’t thought of that, Alexander. You two are  _ dating _ , your family will expect you to kiss at least once.”

 

“Let’s not worry about that right now,” Lydia butted in. “Let’s just concentrate on not getting found out before we even get past the first day.” 

 

“Great idea,” Alec said, pulling the strap of his duffle over his head before closing the trunk of Magnus’s car. He gave Magnus’s hand one last squeeze before grabbing one of his boyfriend’s bags and crossing the street. Lydia and Magnus followed behind with their own luggage in tow. 

 

They had just started up the steps to the mansion when the door opened and a young man came out. He looked a few years older than Alec but the two were clearly related. They both had their grandfather’s nose, their grandmother’s striking hazel eyes, as well as broad shoulders that come with all Trueblood men. “Hey, Alec.” 

 

Alec grinned when he saw the man. “John!” he said and embraced the smaller man. “I thought you weren’t coming. Last time I heard you were somewhere in Lisbon."

 

“I just moved back to the city a couple weeks ago. I’m surprised you didn’t hear, Mom was so excited she called the whole family. And even if I didn’t just get back, do you really think I’d miss an opportunity to beat your ass? Never, man,” he replied before looking over Alec’s shoulder at Magnus and Lydia. “Little Alec, did you bring friends?”

 

“Oh yeah. This is my boy- best friend. My best friend, Magnus,” Alec said. To his credit, he only blushed a little bit and it was barely noticeable in the dying light. 

 

“Smooth,” Magnus whispered before Alec continued. 

 

“And this is my girlfriend, Lydia Branwell. Guys, this is my cousin, John Monteverde.”

 

“It’s great to meet you guys. Growing up, Alec never had any friends, let alone girlfriends” John replied, shaking Magnus’s hand and kissing the back of Lydia’s. 

 

Alec’s smile turned force. “Just because you never met my friends doesn’t mean I didn’t have any.”

 

“Sure, man,” John said patting Alec on the shoulder before turning to Lydia and Magnus. “Y’know, back when my family and Alec’s used to summer together, I used to steal all of Jace’s girlfriends. Think I might be doing the same to Alec this year.”

 

Lydia let out a surprised laugh before Alec cut in quickly. “Haha, that joke never gets old. It’s been really nice to chat, John, but we better find my mom and get settled before it gets dark.” 

 

“Of course,” John said, smiling cheekily. “I have to get get Abuela’s meds out of the car before dinner, anyway. I guess the embarrassing Alec stories have to wait until dinner.”

 

“Can’t wait,” Magnus said as John walked past them down the steps.

 

“Don’t worry, Lydia, he’s harmless,” Alec says as he opens the door, releasing a cacophony of sounds. The house was loud when the trio stepped in. They go unnoticed for a moment, lost in the utter chaos of the house before a voice breaks through the noise. 

 

“Alec!’

 

Alec took a deep breath and forced a smile when his mother appeared in the entryway. “Hi, Mom,” he said shorty, bending down to embrace his mother. 

 

“Hello, Alec.” Their embrace is stiff and only lasts a moment before she turns to her son’s guests. “And you must be Lydia and Magnus. Alec has told me so much about you two.” Her smile looked forced and unnatural on her face, but she still pushed through. She embraced Lydia, saying what a pleasure it was to meet her before turning to Magnus. 

 

Maryse’s smile falters as her eyes travel over Magnus in his sparkly outfit and makeup. Magnus had thought against wearing his usual attire as to fit in with Alec’s family, but Alec had been strongly against it. “I’m bringing my sparkly boyfriend. That way they can get used to it while they think you’re just my best friend. Put on the glitter.” 

 

“Nice to meet you, Magnus,” Maryse said as she shook his hand. 

 

“Oh it’s my pleasure. It’s such a blessing to see where Alec and Isabelle get their looks from. I swear I thought you were Isabelle for a second,” Magnus said, the charmer as always. 

 

Maryse laughed at Magnus’s words and visibly relaxed at the compliment. “Well, I am so glad you two could make it. You’re rooms are upstairs. Alec and Magnus will be sharing and Lydia will be rooming with Alec’s sister and her friend, is that ok, dear?”

 

“That’s perfect, Mrs. Lightwood,” Lydia replied. 

 

“Oh, no, no. Call me Maryse, please,” she corrected. “Now, go get settled. Your names should be on the doors.”

… 

 

“Lydia!”

 

Izzy’s shriek was almost deafening as she basically dove off the top bunk when Lydia walked into her bedroom for the weekend. Lydia just managed to somewhat catch the girl, but ended up hitting her back hard against the wall and Izzy ended up on the floor. 

 

“Oh my God, Isabelle!” Lydia groaned. “Why can’t you hug me like a normal person?” 

 

Izzy jumped up off the floor like she didn’t just drop about six feet onto hardwood. She basically tackled Lydia again in a hug. “Sorry, I got excited,” Izzy said, grinning at Lydia when she pulled away. “I haven’t seen you in over a year, can you blame me? And where is my brother? It is completely unexcusable that I saw you before him!”

 

“His room is down the hall, right by the stairs,” Lydia explained and then Izzy was out the door in a flurry of dark hair. “I’d knock first!” Lydia called after her although she doubted Izzy heard her. She sighed and turned to face the room again, finally notice the other girl. “Oh, hi.”

 

The small redhead stood from her perch on the bottom bunk. “Hi, I’m Clary,” the girl introduced, shaking Lydia’s hand. “I’m Izzy’s friend. We went to UCLA together.”

 

“Right. Izzy told me all about you, it’s nice to finally put a name to the face. I’m Lydia, Alec’s girlfriend,” Lydia supplied, relaxing slightly. She basically knew Clary, Izzy never shut up about Clary. 

 

“Alec’s girlfriend,” Clary repeated slowly, nodding slightly like she didn’t believe it but wasn’t going to question it. “Izzy told me about all about you after she stayed with you, Alec, and Magnus last summer. I never really figured out which one of you was dating Alec and Izzy never said.”

 

Lydia laughed and it wasn’t forced like she thought it’d be. “Yeah, well, it’s not always clear. Sometimes I feel like I’m dating both of them.” It wasn’t a lie, she basically spent all her free time with the couple. She doesn’t know how Alec and Magnus are going to survive once she finally moves out. 

 

“Yeah, I can understand that,” Clary said, distracted and smiling at the ground.

 

Lydia nodded, biting her lip and staring at the ground. A moment of awkward silence passed before Lydia broke it, asking, “so I get the single bed?”

 

“Oh, yeah,” Clary said distractedly. Lydia smiled again before throwing her bag on the bed, pulling out the things that are worthy to unpack for their two night stay. 

 

Izzy came sliding back into the room then, long black hair billowing behind her and grinning like a madman. “So, Mom said dinner will be ready in a few minutes. Ready for the weekend to officially begin?”

… 

 

By the time Clary, Izzy, and Lydia go downstairs for dinner, the whole family is already there. The whole downstairs bustling with the family and the caterers. 

 

Lydia spots Alec and Magnus immediately. They’re sitting in the living room, talking with an old woman that Lydia can only guess is Alec’s grandmother. Magus seems to be laughing at something Grandma Trueblood said and Alec grinned when he sees Lydia, waving her over to them. 

 

He stands when she approaches and wraps his arm around her shoulders. He’s done it about a million times but it has never been awkward until now. “Abuela, this is Lydia, my girlfriend.” 

 

The smile drops off Abuela’s face and her brow crinkles in confusion. Her eyes turn to Magnus and then train back on Lydia. “I thought…” she trailed off, but she composes herself quickly with a shake of her head. “I’m sorry, dear. My old mind spaces out a bit sometimes. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

 

“Oh no, the pleasure's all mine,” Lydia said, taking Alec’s seat next to Magnus. Alec pulls up another chair next to his grandmother. “I’ve heard so much about you from Alec.”

 

“Funny, Alejandro has told me nothing about you,” she said with a pointed look at Alec.

 

Alec smiled sheepishly. “But now you can ask her all the questions you want.” 

 

Abuela looked unamused, but still turned to Lydia and Magnus. “So, Magnus, what are you to Alejandro?” 

 

“I’m his best friend and roommate,” Magnus said easily. “And his ride out here since neither of them have a car or a license.” 

 

“I know how to drive,” Alec fired back as Jace walked in the room. 

 

“Hola, Abuela,” Jace said, butchering the words and kissing his adoptive grandmother on the cheek. “Alec, Magnus, I need your help setting up tables outside for dinner.”

 

Magnus grumbled but stood up anyway and Alec followed, leaving Lydia and Abuela alone. 

 

“To be honest, I thought Alejandro was dating Magnus,” Abuela said making Lydia blanche and nearly choke on her own spit in her surprise. 

 

“What?” Lydia wheezed. 

 

“Oh, no offence to you, Lydia,” Abuela said, her hand reaching out to pat Lydia’s. “Just when he introduced me to Magnus I thought they were nice together. I’m sure you two are even better suited.” 

 

Lydia was spared the effort of coming up with a suitable reply by Alec’s father interrupting them. “It’s time for dinner, Sofia. I’m here to escort you.” 

 

“I don’t need an escort, yerno,” Abuela said, holding her hands out to him. “I just need a hand up.” 

 

Robert rolled his eyes but still helped her to her feet and handed Abuela her cane beofre he noticed Lydia sill sitting on the couch. “Oh, hello, you’re Alec’s girlfriend. Lydia, right?”

 

“Yes, yes,” Lydia said, coming back to herself and basically jumping to her feet. “You’re Alec’s father. I recognise you from pictures.” 

 

Robert nodded. “Nice to meet you,” he said and went to follow his mother-in-law. 

 

Lydia fell back onto the couch and said to herself, “ _ Holy crap _ .”

… 

 

The night was serene and peaceful on the lake, the silence was only broken by the laughter coming from the Trueblood family kid’s table. The kids, ranging from about six years old to late twenties all sat around the table, joking and telling stories. 

 

“Alec, want to go on a walk with me?” Lydia asked after all the food had been eaten and the plates had been clear. 

 

Alec sent a glance at the table. Max was at one end of the table, trying to teach the younger kids some kind of card game. Magnus was talking excitedly with Izzy about fashion and the newest Project Runway season while Jace sat with Clary, the two chatting amicably and Clary smoothly brushing off Jace’s flirting. With all his siblings accounted for and occupied, Alec turned back to her.

 

“Sure.”

 

They both stood and Lydia took his hand, threading her fingers through his like she has seen Magnus and Alec do hundreds of times. “You have huge hands,” Lydia commented as they walked towards the shore of the lake. 

 

“Yeah, I’m proportionate like that,” Alec said. “Magnus really appreciates it.” 

 

“Oh gross!” Lydia exclaimed and Alec laughed, almost falling when Lydia knocked against him. “I did not need to know that.” 

 

Alec laughed and hit his hip against hers before looking over his shoulder at the house. He let go of Lydia’s hand and his hands immediately went into his pockets. “So, any reason you wanted to come out here? Or did our just miss our best friend bonding time.” 

 

Lydia rolled her eyes. “No, I wanted to talk to you.” Alec nodded as he watched their feet kick up the sand as they walked. “I talked to your grandma today.” 

 

Alec humed. “I figured. I did leave you two alone to talk,” Alec said somewhat sarcastically.  

 

“Yeah, well,” Lydia said, trying to meet his tone. “After you two left, your grandma… She told me she thought Magnus was your boyfriend.”

 

Alec stopped walking suddenly and Lydia turned to stand in front of him. She crossed her arms over her chest and bit her lip as Alec stared at the sand, deep in thought. “She thought I was dating Magnus?” He asked, his thumb combing up to his mouth so he could bite the nail. 

 

“Yeah. She seemed really surprised you had a girlfriend at all, honestly.” 

 

Alec ran his hand through his hair. “Well, she likes him. That’s a good thing right? At least now I know when I do come out she won’t have a heart attack from the shock.” Alec’s hands slid down his face. “I have never been more relieved and terrified in my whole entire life.” 

 

“She was the one you were most worried about, right? You got the hardest one out of the way,” Lydia said, trying to be optimistic. 

 

“Yeah,” Alec sighed and continued walking. Lydia followed him. “Now, only my parents, my aunts and uncles, and cousins are left to disown me.”

  
Lydia patted Alec’s back comfortingly. “Way to stay optimistic, buddy.” 


	2. Saturday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Lydia bond, Alec and Lydia kiss, and Magnus knows all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Thanks so much for all the nice comments! Literally those comments were the best thing that happened to me this week. Thank you and I hope you guys enjoy the new chapter.

Lydia started her Saturday stretched out on a lounge chair underneath an umbrella on the beach of the lake. Izzy was in a chair next to her, her legs crossed and braiding Clary’s unruly, red hair. Magnus was on her other side, lounging back and in his element. Alec and Jace sat on the sand between her and Magnus’s chairs. 

 

It was silent and peaceful until Jace wrecked it. 

 

“Ok, Alec, I have been sitting here long enough. Let’s go in the lake,” Jace said, pulling at his brother's arm. 

 

“Maybe later, Jace. Someone has to stay here and keep Magnus company,” Alec excused, sending a wistful glance towards the water. 

 

“Oh my God,” Jace sighed dramatically. “How can you say that to me, Alec. Just look at Max. Look at the smug little face. We need to go beat him up or at least dunk him a few times or  _ something _ .”

 

“Oh go, I’ll be fine,” Magnus said, waving his hand at his boyfriend. “Just don’t go and drown because I’m not going to save you.” 

 

“Yeah, you go, Alec. I’ll stay up here with him, I want to finish my book anyway,” Lydia said. 

 

Jace grabbed Alec’s shoulders and shot Lydia and Magnus a grin. “Look at that, Alec, now you have no more excuses. Now, c’mon, we have to go bully some little kids.” 

 

“Ok,” Alec said as he and Jace started walking towards the water, shoving at each other and eventually breaking out into a race before jumping into the water to come up splashing at each other. 

 

“Ugh, boys,” Izzy said, sipping from her lemonade before standing from her own chair. “C’mon, Clary, we are going to go on the deck and tan. I am not allowing you to go back to California that white.” 

 

“Ok, Iz, and you can put aloe vera on my back when I burn like a piece of toast,” Clary replied, putting her hands out. 

 

Izzy took Clary’s hands in her own and hoister her onto her feet. “That’s the spirit!”

 

A silence fell between Magnus and Lydia once the girls left. Magnus was scrolling through his phone, probably picking out music to listen to, while Lydia turned to her book, completely meaning to actually read it. 

 

That notion went completely out the window when she heard the crunching of grass behind her. She turned her head to meet the newcomer to see John walking towards them. “Hey,” John said, making his presence known to Magnus. His hand came to rest on the back of Lydia’s chair and he had to bend over slightly to fit under the umbrella. “You guys mind if I sit?”

 

“Not at all,” Magnus replied quickly, putting his earbuds in his ears and fiddling with his phone. “Just don’t talk to me, I am going to nap.”

 

John laughed and turned to Lydia, as if asking for permission. “Go ahead,” Lydia smiled. John nodded and sat down on the grass between Magnus and Lydia’s chairs, in the same spot Alec had been occupying just a minuet before. 

 

Lydia had barely opened her book before John asked, “So, Lydia, how did you and Alec meet?”

 

Lydia closes her book and sets it in her lap, turning her full attention to John. “At a party our first week at school. We just started talking and… clicked, I guess,” Lydia said. It wasn’t a lie, technically. 

 

“Did he knock on your door the next day and ask you for help setting up his speaker?” John asked jokingly. 

 

“No,” Lydia snorted. “We bonded over our hate for parties and love for math.” 

 

John lets his hands slide back on the sand and fell onto his back with a loud grown. “You did not just tell me that.” 

 

“I did and it’s true.”

 

“You would not have told me that if you knew all the time and effort I put into making Alec cool. I tried to suffocate his love for math just for him to become a mathematician. It’s the biggest disappointment of my life,” John said in all seriousness. “But I guess I didn’t completely fail. He did manage to catch a pretty girl like you, after all.” 

 

Lydia blushed and her eyes moved from John to the sand under her toes. “Yep. Alec seduced me with his love for math and knowledge of the Narnia Chronicles.” 

 

“Nerd!” John exclaimed again. Lydia saw Magnus scowl at the back of John’s head. Whether it be because John woke Magnus up from his nap or for insulting his boyfriend, Lydia will never know. “Please don’t tell me you're a mathematician too,” John begged playfully. 

 

“I’m training to be a police officer, actually,” Lydia said. 

 

“That’s pretty cool.” John nodded. “But that makes you a secret nerd.” 

 

“I guess so,” Lydia laughed and was about to say something else before a yell from the lake interrupted her. 

 

“Hey, Magnus! Lydia!” Jace called from the water from his perch on Alec’s back. Surprisingly, Magnus showed signs of life and removed his earbuds to properly hear. “You guys sure you don’t want to swim because Alec sure needs saving!” he yelled out before leaning back and pulling Alec with him, both of them falling into the water with a huge splash. 

 

John sighed and stood, pulling his shirt over his head in the process. “Guess that’s my cue,” John said. Lydia barely heard him, to distracted by the abs right in front of her face. “I have to go beat Jace’s ass and defend Alec’s honor. I’ll see you guys later.”

 

Magnus twinkled his fingers in a wave as John made a run for the lake, landing on top of Alec and Jace when he jumped in. 

 

"He likes you," Magnus said, lowering his sunglasses on his nose so he could peer at her over them. His eyebrows did a little dance and Lydia just scoffed. 

 

"What? Were you listening the whole time?" Lydia inquired. 

 

"Of course," Magnus smirked. "Do you not know me at all, Lydia? I'm a slut for drama."

 

Lydia rolled her eyes and leaned back in her chair again, clicking her tongue. “It’s not drama, Magnus. And he doesn’t like me. Literally no one likes me.”

 

Magnus shook his head and his smirk turned into a smile. "You need to give yourself more credit, Lydia. You are very likable and you've finally found a boy who sees that."

 

"Whatever, Magnus," Lydia said, turning back to her book. "Even if you're right, nothing is going to come of it. He thinks I'm dating Alec."

 

Magnus shrugged and put his earbud back in. "You never know. The weekend is just beginning."

… 

 

The Lightwoods are in charge of clean up for dinner. 

 

Robert opted out and instead is having a beer with Maryse’s brothers on the back porch. Jace couldn’t help because he promised the younger kids he’d teach them how to play blackjack and gamble. 

 

The rest of the Lightwood clan and their guests are in the kitchen. Max is washing the dishes from dinner while Alec and Lydia wash and put them away. They’re pushing and shoving at each other. The occasional soap sud goes flying and a whip from a towel can be heard every once in awhile as well as a constant stream of giggles. 

 

Magnus, John, and Izzy are talking with Clary at the table, stringing popcorn for the party the next day, although they are eating and listening to one of Clary’s stories about her crazy art teachers more than they are stringing. 

 

Maryse is at the counter on the other side of the kitchen. She’s working, even though everyone agreed work would stay at home for the weekend. They had basically forgotten she was there until she broke her silence. “You know, you can kiss your girlfriend, Alec,” Maryse said. Alec drops the glass he was putting away in surprise and it clatters against the marble countertop loudly, drawing the attention of everyone else in the kitchen. 

 

“It is a family event, but don’t mean you two can’t kiss occasionally,” Maryse adds. 

 

Alec scrambles with the glass before turning to his mother. “No, Mom. It’s- uh, it’s fine. I’m- Lydia and I aren’t big fans of PDA.” 

 

“Nonsense,” Maryse insisted. “Kissing in front of your family is not PDA. It’s fine. Just kiss her.”

 

“Yeah, Alec, just kiss her,” Magnus and Izzy said at the same time, giggling to each other. Clary shook her head at their antics while Alec just shot them a glare. John stayed silent, his eyes never leave Lydia’s face. He bit his lips and kept playing with the popcorn on the string. He doesn’t look away when Lydia’s eyes meet his. 

 

But John’s eyes dart away when Alec comes closer and places his hand on her waist. She turns to him and gives him a forced smile. He gives one back before he bends down and gives her a small peck on the lips. It lasted less then a second and wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be. When Alec pulls away, he wrapps his arm around Lydia’s shoulders and pulls her into his side and places a kiss to the top of her head. 

 

Then he says something witty to Magnus and Izzy who through popcorn and insults, but Lydia doesn’t hear any of it, not really. 

 

All she notices it that John’s chair is empty. 

… 

 

The whole house was dark and silent when Lydia sneaked out of her room. She crept down the hallway as quietly as she could and was just a door away from Magnus and Alec’s room before the door opened. 

 

She jumped, hitting the wall with a thump. “Oh my God,” she breathed as John came into focus. 

 

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” John said, his voice down to a whisper. He slowly shut the bathroom door, the only sound being a small click. 

 

Lydia shook her head and breathed out a laugh. “Don’t be,” she said. “You didn’t expect anyone to be awake. Neither did I.”

 

John looked her up and down. “Where are you going?” he asked. “Last time I checked, people don’t usually sleep in jackets and tennis shoes.” 

 

“They don’t,” Lydia agreed, grinning. “I, just, um… We ran out of Alovera. Clary’s sunburn is really bad and I have to go get her more since I used up the last of what she brought. I was just going to wake up Alec so he can take me to the grocery store in town.”

 

“Or you can just take my car,” John cut in quickly. “I mean, we both know how Alec is when he doesn’t get all his beauty sleep.”

 

“Thanks for the offer but I can’t drive,” Lydia said. John gave her a look of disbelief. “Don’t look at me like that. I was born and raised in a city. My parents didn’t even own a car when I was growing up. I have literally never needed to drive myself anywhere until right now.” 

 

“Ok, then,” John replied. “Looks like I’m driving you.”

 

“No, no you don’t have to,” Lydia said. “Alec or Magnus can drive me. It’s fine.”

 

“It’s no problem. I really wanted to go get some ice cream anyway. Just give me a second to grab my keys and my shoes then we’ll hit the road,” John said. He smiled and turned on his heel, silently creeping into his room. 

 

Lydia bit her lip as she watched him go, Magnus’s words from earlier that day coming back to her. 

 

_ He likes you.  _

 

That afternoon she had brushed off the words because she believed there was no way they were true. Guys didn’t like Lydia. Guys saw Lydia as a really cool friend or a challenge, something to bone the asexuality out of. No one  _ likes  _ Lydia. No one has  _ crushes  _ on Lydia. And even if they did they don’t last long. Those kinds of things are for girls like Isabelle and Clary, not Lydia. 

 

“Hey, ready to go?” John asked, making Lydia jump for the second time that night. 

 

“Yeah,” she said quickly before turning and making her way out of the house. 

… 

 

“You know,” Lydia started, breaking the silence of the car. “I still don’t know how exactly you’re related to Alec.” 

 

John laughed and sent her a smile, his eyes barely leaving the road. “Really?”

 

“Yeah. I mean, I know you’re cousins, but I don’t know how exactly,” Lydia said. “You guys could be fifth cousins, twice removed for all I know.” 

 

“It’s not that complicated. My mom is Maryse’s older sister,” John supplied, smiling at the dark, winding road. “They’re about two years apart so they were really close growing up.”

 

Lydia hummed, nodding lazily. She put her bare feet against the dashboard. “Is that why your families always  _ summered _ together.” 

 

“Yeah I guess,” he trailed off, looking over to give Lydia another smile. 

 

“I wish I had a family like yours,” Lydia said wistfully. Her head fell back against the headrest, her eyes never leaving her feet. Her toes were fiddling with the handle that opens the glove compartment, wedging it open just to click it shut with her other foot. “My mom was an only child and my dad has a brother but he and his family live in Copenhagen. I’ve only met my cousins once or twice. And I don’t have any siblings. I love how big your family is. You always have someone to talk to. You have like built in friends or something.”

 

“I guess that’s one way to look at it,” John said, his eyes never leaving the road and the smile dropped off his face. 

 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Lydia asked.

 

John shrugged and chewed his lip a bit absentmindedly as he made a turn. “The more cousins you have, the more people you get compared to. Especially the older ones. Like, there’s some kind of competition to raise the best kids. If that makes sense.” 

 

Lydia nodded. “Sure.” She paused, gaze training on the dark woods outside the window before adding quietly, “I never thought of it like that.”

 

A silence fell over the pair, but John soon broke it by asking, 

 

“So how bad is Clary’s sunburn?”

 

Lydia breathed out a laugh. “I probably shouldn’t laugh, it’s so bad. It’s a good thing that she brought a backless dress for tomorrow ‘cause her back is as red as a tomato.” 

 

John winced. “And where did you burn? You said you used the last of it, right?”

 

“Yeah. I just got my shoulders. It’s not that bad. No one will even know I was sunburnt by Monday,” Lydia said. 

 

John chuckled. “Ah, you white people and your sunburns. I’m glad I never have to feel that pain.”

 

“What are you talking about?” Lydia asked, annoyed. “I know you’re at least half white, blondie.” 

 

“Right you are, missy, but the white part isn’t what matters. The half latino part is what matters and it protects me from the sun’s harmful rays,” John said, smugly. 

 

“You’re so full of it,” Lydia said. 

 

“Oh, but I’m not,” Jahn bragged. “I put on one coat of sunscreen, add a day in the sun and I come out looking like a Greek God, not a human tomato.” Lydia rolled her eyes and John grinned at her. “Don’t worry too much though. You may burn easy but you’re still beautiful.”

 

Lydia was rendered speechless as John turned into the parking lot of Glenn’s 24 Hour Market and pulled into a parking spot right in front of the doors. Lydia tried to compose herself as she got out of the car. John didn’t follow her and instead pulled his phone out of the pocket of his pajama pants. 

 

“Are you coming in?” Lydia asked, her cheeks still burning from John’s last comment. 

 

“Nah,” John said, waving his phone. “I don’t need anything. I’ll just stay here.” Lydia nodded and shut the car door before walking into the market.

… 

 

“I have decided, I’m going to bully Alec into teaching you how to drive,” are the first words John said when Lydia got back into the car. “It might not be necessary right now and I’m not saying you need to get your license or anything, but it’s an important skill. You should at least know the basics of driving a car.” 

 

“You’re right,” Lydia said. “I’d have no mode of transportation and be utterly screwed if  _ The Walking Dead _ were to ever happen. Better learn now while Alec is still alive to teach me.”

 

“Exactly,” John laughed, starting up his car. “You understand me.”

 

“Oh, wait, here.” She rummaged through her shopping bag and pulled out a carton of ice cream. “I figured this is the least I could do since you drove me all the way out here. I got Ben and Jerry’s phish food, it’s not that popular but you can’t not like it…” She trailed off, awkwardly holding out the carton of ice cream. 

 

John gave her a true blinding smile. He looked really cute in the dim light from the sign promoting Glenn’s 24 Hour Market. “That’s my favorite ice cream.”

 

“Mine too,” Lydia said quietly and shyly put the carton back into her bag. She grinned down at her feet, thinking over Magnus’s words again. 

 

_ He likes you.  _

 

Well, shit, maybe Lydia likes him too. 

 

To bad he and his whole family thinks she’s dating his cousin.  

… 

 

Everything was still quiet and dark when they pull up in front of the house. John parked directly in front of the house but neither made a move to get out of the car. She knows once she opens the door, the John that took her to the store and might of been flirting with her would be gone forever. After tonight he went back to being her fake-boyfriend's cousin. 

 

John leaned towards her, hovering over the center console and into Lydia’s space. His eyes do the flick thing, when they go from her eyes to her lips and back again a couple times. He was checking her out and leaning in, just like someone would do right before they’re about to kiss someone. Lydia, believe it or not, did not have much experience with kissing. There was really just a couple guys in college and, of course, Alec’s small peck the night before. It was just a handful of guys and she didn’t like any of them nearly as much as she likes John.

 

_ Crap. _

 

But her feelings for John aren’t even the problem right now because John thinks Lydia is dating Alec. If he kisses her that just opens up a door full of problems. 

 

But Lydia doesn’t have to worry for too long because John suddenly stopped and the smile dropped off his face and his eyes lowered from Lydia's own and down to the carpet of the car. "We better head inside." He pulled out of Lydia's space. 

 

"Yeah," Lydia sighed. She opened the door of the car and stepped out into the cool night air. John walked around the opposite side of the car and they met at the steps of the house. They entered together and silently crept to the second floor. "Oh, wait," Lydia said, reaching out and grabbing John's arm as he turned to enter his bedroom. He stopped and turned his head towards her, his eyes starting where Lydia's hand was touching his arm and moving up to her face. Lydia stalled for a second, completely overwhelmed by the intensity of his stare. "I have your ice cream. I probably should have given this to you earlier, but..."

 

Her hand fell from his arm as her words trailed off. His eyes followed her hand as it went into the bag and pulled out the damp carton. She held it out to him and he took it, their fingers barely brushing on the wet cardboard. "Thanks," he whispered, looking down at the ice cream, smiling down at the ice cream like he had smiled at Lydia in the car. 

 

"Least I can do," she whispered. "Thanks for the ride." They grinned at each other in the dark, their eyes not breaking as Lydia walked backwards the ten steps to her bedroom door. She only looked away when she put her hand onto the doorknob. 

 

“You know,” John said, making Lydia look up. Lydia could barely make out his face in the darkness. “I was kidding, the other day, when I said I would steal you from Alec. I was totally kidding. But, I don’t think I am anymore.” 

 

Lydia opened her mouth to answer, but he was gone before she even understood what he said. 


	3. Sunday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The party happens and so do some coming outs.

Early Sunday morning Lydia found herself in the chaos that was the Trueblood family getting ready for a party. It was close to eight o’clock and the majority of the house was already awake and bustling about. 

 

Lydia found herself standing by the coffee machine, waiting for the cereal to finally it’s rounds around the kitchen  and make it’s way to her. She was still asleep on her feet, but Magnus was wide awake next to her, chattering about anything that came to mind. 

 

“What are you planning to wear today? The yellow dress I made you or the horrid red one you bought? I, of course, think you should wear the yellow one, but if you don’t than Izzy definitely should. She actually appreciates me,” Magnus babbled on, but Lydia wasn't listening because John had just entered the kitchen. If Lydia wasn’t half asleep she probably would have been able to watch John and keep up with Magnus’s one sided conversation, but it was to early for multitasking Lydia to make an appearance. “Lydia, are you even listening to me?” Magnus asked, his elbow jabbing at her ribs to get her attention. 

 

“What?” She asked, coming out of her sleepy daze to nod. “Oh, uh, yeah. I’m definitely wearing the yellow dress.” 

 

Magnus followed his friend’s gaze to find she was looking at the eldest Monteverde. Magnus’s grumpy pout changed to a knowing smirk. “Oh, I see. After your late night drive with John, you're crushing on him. What did I say, Lydia? Oh, wait, I remember:  _ he likes you _ .”

 

“How do you know about that?” Lydia asked, jumping awake in her surprise. 

 

Magnus took a sip of his tea and swishes it around his mug a little before he shrugged. “Clary told me.”

 

“When did you talk to Clary?” Lydia asked as if Magnus betrayed her. 

 

Magnus sipped his tea and gave her a too sweet smile. “Turns out Biscuit and I both like early morning walks on the lake. Did you know that Clary’s mother was actually my art teacher in high school? Small world isn’t it.” Lydia just stared at him for a second, mouth hanging open in shock. “Oh, don’t look so surprised, Lydia. You know nothing gets by me. Ah, good morning, Alexander.” 

 

In Lydia’s state of shock she hadn’t realised that Alec had made his way into the kitchen. He was still asleep and he was stumbling through the kitchen like a zombie, his bed head was atrocious and his eyes were barely open. He must have found his way downstairs and into the kitchen by following the smell of coffee. Alec grunted in a greeting and took the cup out of Magnus’s hand, taking a sip before pulling a face. 

 

“That’s tea, dear,” Magnus said before grabbing a new mug and pouring some coffee for Alec. “Here’s your coffee.” 

 

Alec took a sip and smiled. “Thanks,” he said, his voice heavy with sleep, before he started to lean in to give Magnus a kiss. Magnus side stepped away from the counter, but Alec kept leaning and ended up kissing Lydia instead. This kiss was longer than the one from Friday night and better technique wise, but stunk because of Alec’s atrocious morning breath. Alec was not awake enough to realise that it was Lydia he was kissing, not Magnus. 

 

The kiss ended suddenly when there was a loud crash in the kitchen. Alec jumped away, startled awake by the loud noise. The whole kitchen had fallen completely silent and all eyes were on John in the middle of the kitchen. John didn’t seem to notice, his eyes were trained on the ground, on the plate he had just broken. He quickly bent down and picked up the two halves of the plate he had dropped and forced them into Jace’s hands before stomping out of the room. 

 

“What the fuck?” Alec asked quietly, his brain clearly still not firing on all cylinders. His eyes moved from where John was standing a few moments ago to Lydia. He stared at her for a second as if she wasn’t really there, or rather, who he didn’t think should be standing there. “What the fuck?” 

 

Magnus’s hands appeared on Alec’s shoulders to steer him out of the kitchen. Magnus sent Lydia an  _ I told you so  _ look over Alec’s shoulder. “C’mon, Alec, let’s go get ready for the party. I am sure everything will make sense when you are fully awake.” 

 

_ He likes you. _

… 

 

Lydia spent most of the party by Alec. She stands by his side and pretends to be interested in what his family is saying. She does what a good girlfriend should do and reminds herself that it’s just one more day. Tomorrow, everything will be back to normal. 

 

Tomorrow, Alec would be back to making out with Magnus on the couch and Lydia will be cuddling with the Chairman in her bedroom. Everything will be back to normal. 

 

But that doesn’t stop her from watching John from across the party. He doesn’t fit in with tomorrow’s normal, in fact, she probably will never see him again after tonight. 

 

Throughout the night, he’s usually talking to someone in the absolute farthest spot from Lydia and Alec. He had been ignoring her all day. Like, turning around when he sees her in that general direction kind of ignore. 

 

He might have been ignoring her, but she still caught him staring whenever she looked over, which is basically all the time. After the fifth time Lydia caught his him looking in just as many minutes, he downed his beer and high tailed it into the house. 

 

Lydia grunted in frustration before Magnus makes himself known. “What’s up with you?” he asked, his head hovering over her shoulder and she knew he saw John go into the house. “You look like the house just personally offended you.”

 

“It wasn’t the house,” Lydia mumbled. 

 

“Was it John?” Alec asked. 

 

Lydia turned on her heel and looked at him in surprise. “How do you know about me and John?”

 

“I’m not completely oblivious. I have eyes,” Alec snarked. Magnus snorted and Lydia gave him an unimpressed look. “Ok, fine, Magnus told me, but I would have figured it out anyway if I was awake during this mornings post kiss walk out.” 

 

“He likes you,” Magnus repeated and Alec nodded in agreement. 

 

Lydia pursed her lips together in frustration. “No, he doesn’t. You’ve told me about all of the girlfriends he stole from Jace, Alec. He probably just wants me because he thinks I’m dating Alec. The second we fake break up or whatever, he won’t even talk to me.” And, man, does that hurt to say because she really likes him. But Lydia’s smart, she’s not going to get sucked into John’s games. 

 

“Lydia, I know you don’t want to hear this, but I think he likes you,” Alec said. “With all those girls he stole from Jace, he acted like a bad boy. He didn’t give them the time of day, but with you he’s different. When he saw Jace kiss his girlfriends, he broke it up and snuck them a beer. When I kissed you, he literally had to leave the room.” He put both hands on her shoulders and gave her his big-brother-knows-best looks. “He likes you Lydia. And you like him too.” 

 

“You have to go get him,” Magnus butted in, popping over Alec’s shoulders for a second before disappearing, only his hair visible over Alec shoulder. 

 

Alec nodded in agreement. “He’s right. You have to go get him.”

 

“But- but what about you?” Lydia asked. “I can’t just- I can’t… We can’t just break up in the middle of your grandmother’s birthday party. You’re coupon hasn’t expired yet, Alec.”

 

“Yes, we can,” Alec said. “As of right now, we are broken up, your coupon is officially expired. Now, go fix things with John.” 

… 

 

Lydia finds John fairly quickly. 

 

He’s weaving through the bustling caterers in the kitchen while searching through the cabinets, probably for alcohol. He finds what he’s looking for fairly quickly and spins around, holding a mostly full bottle of vodka and grinning at it. 

 

However, the smile drops off his face when his eyes travel up and meet Lydia’s across the room. He sighs and takes a swig before walking out of the kitchen. Lydia dodges caterers and runs down the hallway to catch him. She pushes him into the open coat closet and shuts the door behind her, leaning against it to block his escape route. 

 

“Move,” John growled, but he doesn’t move towards her. He’s leaning back against the wall opposite the door. He’s as far away from Lydia as he can get and his knuckles turning white because of his vice grip around the neck of the bottle. 

 

“Not until you tell me why you’re avoiding me,” Lydia demanded. 

 

“I’m not avoiding you,” John mumbled. 

 

Lydia scoffed. “You literally tried to run away from me twenty seconds ago.” John crossed his arms over his chest and refused to look at Lydia. “I thought we were friends, John, but you’ve been basically running away from me all day.”

 

“That’s the problem,” John said. “I can’t be your friend.”

 

“But after we talked last night-”

 

“Last night was a mistake,” John interrupted. “For a few minutes I forgot. I forgot that you are Alec’s girl. Instead I was pretending that I was out with a girl who likes me the same way that I like her, not a girl who’s in a serious relationship with my cousin. But this morning, I saw you kissing Alec and I realised you will never be mine. And I can’t just wat-” 

 

Before John could finish his thought, Lydia grabbed him by the color of his dress shirt and crashed their lips together, effectively cutting him off. Lydia barely hears the vodka bottle hit the floor before she’s pushed up against the closet door 

 

John pulled away quickly. “Wait. What about- what about Alec?”

 

“We’re not together,” Lydia replied quickly, the words were barely out of her mouth before John was kissing her again. 

 

They should probably talk. She should probably explain the whole situation to him. She should probably decide boundaries before they go too far. 

 

But she doesn’t. Instead Lydia kisses him like there’s no tomorrow. 

 

Until the door opens out from under her and she nearly falls onto the hardwood floor.

 

Luckily, John catches her, taking a step forward and grabbing her around her waist while Lydia’s hands grab at his shoulders. John barely caught his footing so for a while she just hangs there, staring up into the shocked face of Maryse Lightwood. 

… 

 

“Maryse, please listen to me. You don’t know the whole story.” 

 

“Oh, I don’t need to know the whole story. I know a cheater when I see one, Lydia.” 

 

“But I wasn’t-”

 

“I don’t want to hear it!” Maryse snaps, stopping and turning to Lydia so suddenly Lydia almost slams into her. “I can’t believe you and John could betray Alec in this way.” Then Maryse stomps off again and Lydia doesn’t bother to chase after her. There’s nothing she can do except hope she didn’t just embarrassed Alec too badly. 

 

She can see Alec from her spot on the back porch. He’s standing with Magnus and Jace right on the edge of the grass right before it meets the sand. He’s laughing, but Lydia sees the way his smile turns to confusion when he sees his mother weaving towards the crowd towards him. 

 

Alec frowns when Maryse reaches him and she sees Magnus and Jace exchange looks before taking a step away from Alec and Maryse to start whispering to each other. Alec and Maryse seem to argue for a few seconds before Maryse cries out, “For goodness sake, Alec, Lydia is cheating on you!”

 

The whole party stops and turns to look at Alec and Maryse. Alec immediately blushes when he sees all the eyes on him and runs his hand through his hair in his distress. He may be embarrassed now, but he’s going to be fine. Lydia knows he’s going to be fine. He’s just going to tell his family that she broke up with him, their relationship hasn’t been good for a while and the stress of the party was the breaking point. Lydia may come off as the bad guy, but it doesn’t matter because it’s all going to be fine. 

 

Everything is going to be fine. 

 

But then Alec threw a curveball. 

 

“Oh, screw this,” he says before grabbing the collar of Magnus’s dress shirt and pulling him into a passionate kiss. 

 

A gasp rippled through the party. The majority of Alec’s aunts and uncles look scandalised, but their reactions compared to the utter shock and disgust on Maryse’s face. 

 

There’s a snort at Lydia’s right and she turns her head to see Robert and Alec’s eldest cousin Hodge. Robert looks shocked, understandably, but Hodge just murmurs, “I fucking knew it,” before knocking back the rest of his drink. Robert scurries off to his wife’s side. 

 

But then the whole focus of the party seems to shift when the caterers bring out the too big cake with  _ Happy 98th Birthday, Abuela  _ written in frosting on the top and start singing “Feliz cumpleanos a ti. Feliz compleanos a ti…”

 

Lydia takes the distraction as an opportunity to make her way to Alec and Magnus who have stopped kissing but are still tangled in each other’s arms. Maryse stomps by her and Robert follows after his wife like a dog that had just been kicked. He keeps his eyes trained on the ground. It seems the shock hasn’t worn off just yet.

 

“You never cease to amaze me, Alexander,” Lydia hears Magnus say when she gets close enough. Alec laughs uncomfortably and pulls away, but his arm remains in it’s rightful place around Magnus’s waist. 

 

Izzy seems to appear out of nowhere and attacks Alec with a hug. “I’m proud of you, Big Brother,” she said, kissing him on the cheek before letting go and dragging a grinning Jace and Clary away. 

 

“Well, that was unexpected,” Lydia said. 

 

“Tell me about it,” Alec replied. He was still uneasy and uncomfortable, but there was a relaxed air about him that he only has when he’s at home. He’s happy, Lydia can tell, even if this wasn’t his planned coming out. “I just hope I don’t get disowned.” 

 

“Alejandro,” Abuela’s voice cuts through their conversation. Alec’s body tenses as he braces himself for what he was scared of. His parent’s reactions were one thing, but Abuela’s is completely different. If she tells him never to come back, that she is disgusted and never wants to see him again, the Alec will listen and leave his family alone forever. 

 

He jumps into an apology because maybe that will soften the blow. Maybe she would forgive him. “I’m so sorry, Abuela. I didn’t mean to ruin your party-”

 

Abuela shushed him and then reached out, taking Alec’s huge hand in her smaller one. “You should not be sorry, Alejandro. You should have felt safe enough to come out to this family years ago. No matter what, Alec, this family will always love and accept you, no matter who you love. I love you, mijo.” 

 

“I love you too, Abuela,” Alec said and bent down to hug his grandmother. “Thank you.”

 

“You don’t need to thank me, Alejandro. You just need to introduce me to your boyfriend.” Magnus barked out a laugh at that and Alec stuttered out an introduction when Lydia felt a tap on her shoulder. 

 

She looked over her shoulder to see John standing there, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet. “Uh, hey. Can we talk?” 

 

“Yeah, of coarse.”

 

They make their way down onto the beach, far enough where no one would overhear them but close enough where they can still hear the chatter from the party. “So,” John starts awkwardly, forcing his hands into his jean pockets and kicking at the sand. “What was up with you and Alec exactly?”

 

“I’m his best friend,” Lydia started. “We met during our first week at NYU and I came up with this stupid idea that we can use each other as beards until we come out to our families. We’ve never been more than friends. Who have kissed like twice.” 

 

“Come out?”

 

“Yeah,” Lydia chuckled awkwardly. This was the moment of truth. After this moment John’s view of Lydia will change forever. “I’m asexual.”

 

John let out a relieved breath and then laughed humorlessly. “Oh, thank God.” He ran his hand through his blond hair before turning his eyes on Lydia. “I thought you were about to come out as a lesbian,” he explained after seeing the confused look on Lydia’s face. “But asexual. I can live with that.”

 

“Not to sound condescending or anything, but do you know what asexuality is?” Lydia asked. 

 

“You don’t like sex, right?” John asked. 

 

“I don’t experience sexual attraction,” Lydia corrected. “But sure. Close enough.” 

 

John shrugged and stepped closer to Lydia, taking one of her hands in his. “Well, still, there’s wiggle room there. Compromises can be made. If you were a lesbian, we would be done, but this we can still make it work. We can compromise. I’m down with that, if you are.”

 

“I’m definitely down with that,” Lydia said, voice barely over a whisper. 

 

“Great,” John grinned. “So, you want to go on a date sometime?”

 

“I would love to go on a date with you,” Lydia smiled. 

 

John’s smile was so wide, Lydia was sure his face would break. But her smile was probably just as wide. “Are you free Friday? I am really good at cooking spaghetti and meatballs.”

 

“I love spaghetti and meatballs,” Lydia said. “Friday is perfect for me.”

 

“Great,” John repeated. “It’s a date.” 

… 

 

“You brought the stupid coupons?” Alec asked. 

 

“Of course I did?” Magnus stated, although it sounded more like a question. “Why wouldn’t I? My Gosh, do you know me at all, Alexander.” Alec rolled his eyes and Magnus lightly. Lydia and John sat on the log next to the couple in front of the fire, their hands intertwined and resting on the log between them. 

 

“Why did you bring the coupons, Magnus?” Lydia asked, smiling sweetly at him. 

 

Magnus spun on his heel to grin back at Lydia. “Great question, Sweet Cheeks. I brought the Fake-Date Coupons for the purpose of ceremony. That is why I proposed this fire tonight, to burn the coupons and their symbolism for Alexander and Lydia’s pretend straightness.” 

 

“So you brought the stupid coupons on the off chance that I came out of the closet this weekend?” Alec asked, his voice monotone and unamused. 

 

“I am always prepared for a coming out, Alexander,” Magnus said, more dramatically than necessary and grinned cheekily and plopped himself onto Alec’s lap. He wrapped his arms around his boyfriend’s neck and placed a loud kiss on Alec’s cheek. He held the bent and frayed pieces of paper out to Alec. “Want to do the honors, Darling?” 

 

“Sure,” Alec grinned, taking the old coupons from Magnus. “Lydia?” he asked, holding them out to her. 

 

She grinned and took one. “This is stupid.”

 

Alec shrugged. “It’s ceremonious.” He crinkled his coupon into a little ball and throws it into the fire. Lydia throws hers in too and it floated down slowly until a flame caught it. 

 

“Wonderful, now that the ceremonious burning has commenced, we must kiss our significant others,” Magnus announced, grinning at Alec. Alec rolled his eyes, but was grinning fondly when Magnus pulled his head down so their lips could meet. 

 

“Well, if we must,” John smiled shyly.

 

“If me must,” Lydia agreed before John leaned in and kissed her. 

… 

 

_ 3 years later… _

 

“I know this is supposed to be the best day of Alec’s life, but it’s probably my worst,” John said in a dramatic whisper. They were sitting out in the hallway of the hotel hosting the wedding, directly outside Alec’s room. In fact, they were leaning against the wall across from Alec’s door to make sure he didn’t sneak out to see Magnus in the middle of the night. “Not only is my  _ fiance  _ sharing a bed with my  _ cousin _ , but I have to watch her walk down the aisle with Ragnor Fell. You walking down the aisle without me is one thing, I can deal with that on it’s own, but with  _ Ragnor Fell. _ Nothing is worse than that.”

 

“Ragnor is a nice guy,” Lydia said, kicking John’s leg lightly. “He’s Magnus’s best man and it’s literally ten steps. It’s not like I’m marrying the guy.” 

 

John sighed dramatically. “Maybe if you were sleeping with me tonight I could forgive and forget, but nope. You’re sleeping next to my cousin, who you dated.”

 

“Fake dated,” Lydia corrected, grinning. 

 

“Patato, potato,” John deadpanned, leaning heavily against Lydia and dropping his head onto her shoulder. “Doesn’t change that the bed's too cold,” John said. 

 

Lydia laced her fingers through John’s and rested their joined hands on her thigh. “Don’t worry, it’s just...” she trailed off, checking her watch for the time. “Just fifteen more hours. Then the wedding and photos are over and I’m all yours.”

 

“I like the sound of that,” John said, raising his head and kissing Lydia’s cheek. 

 

John had just returned his head to Lydia’s shoulder when the door to Alec’s room opened, the soon-to-be-groom walking out of the room, phone pressed to his ear. “Yeah, I’m walking out the door right… shit.” Alec dropped the phone to his side, giving the couple a grumpy look. “I thought you left to go cuddle with him,” Alec whined to Lydia, pointing his phone at John. 

 

“I did,” Lydia said, grinning. “Out here, in the hallway, to catch you when you try and sneak out to see Magnus. Looks like I did a pretty good job, wouldn’t you say, John?”

 

“The best,” John said over a yawn. 

 

Alec scowled and Lydia’s smile softened. “Go back to sleep, Alec. It’s just fourteen more hours until you can see Magnus. If you're lucky you’ll spend most of that time sleeping.” 

 

Alec was still scowling when he raised the phone back to his ear. “Sorry, babe, I got caught by the parents.” He turned around to go back into his room. “How was I supposed to know that they would be sitting right in the hallway?” The door didn’t even shut before Alec was poking his head back out. “Does FaceTime count as seeing the bride?” He asked. 

 

“ _ I am not the bride! _ ” came Magnus’s voice over the phone. 

 

“It counts,” Lydia said and Alec ducked back in his room with a grunt. “I think that’s my cue. We don’t want Alec to be dead on his feet on his wedding day.” 

 

“Yeah, probably,” John said, untangling himself from Lydia. He got onto his feet and pulled Lydia onto hers afterward. 

 

“Goodnight,” Lydia said, raising up on her toes to give her fiance a chaste kiss. 

 

“Goodnight,” John said. He wrapped his arms around Lydia, drawing her into his chest and planting a kiss the top of her head. “I love you.”

  
Lydia smiled against his chest and couldn’t be happier with the way her life turned out. “I love you too, John.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And it's done! Really hope you guys liked it! :)


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